Admissions FAQ

Frequently asked questions about admissions have been organized into subtopics. Click on a question to reveal the answer.

Application Materials

How do I get an application for admission?

All applicants should apply online. You must pay the admissions processing fee at the time of submitting the application and can make payment by credit card or electronic check. Applications received online receive the fastest turnaround in processing and are available to the academic departments immediately upon downloading from the admissions system. If, after repeated attempts, you have difficulty applying online, please contact gradadm@uga.edu.

Can I apply now and submit the application fee later?

No. Online applications must be accompanied by an application fee, which may be paid by credit card or electronic check. Please note that electronic check payments submitted through the online application system take several days longer to be officially received by Graduate Admissions than do credit card payments. The “e-check” must clear the participating bank before the application is released to us to process.

What is the deadline to apply?

Answers to this question are often confusing because there are different deadlines depending upon academic program and whether you want to be considered for a graduate assistantship. Some programs also limit admission to specific semesters. Fore more information, please visit our deadlines page.

International applicants must meet Graduate School deadline to allow for adequate time to review credentials and obtain additional visa paperwork for accepted students.

Applications submitted after the Graduate School admissions deadlines will be marked for the following semester.

How do I check on the status of my application?

An admissions counselor in Graduate Admissions will review your application for initial completeness and send you an email message to confirm that it has been reviewed. Depending upon the time of the year and how busy the admissions office, the initial review may take from 5 – 21 days from the date that you received our application confirmation message. The Graduate Admissions Office will contact you by e-mail to confirm receipt of any documents supporting your application (transcripts, test scores). If you need clarification about departmental requirements, please contact the academic department’s graduate coordinator.

Where do I send the admissions application materials?

Many of your admissions application materials will be submitted online to Graduate Admissions (e.g. application for admission, transcripts, resume and statement of purpose). If offered admission, official transcripts should be sent electronically from your institution or mailed to the following address. Supplemental departmental requirements such as a writing sample should be sent directly to the academic department. You can find the address by selecting the program link on our Degree Programs website.

How do I apply to more than one program?

After you have submitted your first application and application fee, you may add a second application for $40 and a third application for $30. You may only have three active applications at any time, and they cannot pursue the same degree in different terms. You will be given the option to add additional applications after submitting the first application.

Please remember to submit departmental requirements to each department. A resume, statement of intent or other departmental requirements cannot be sent by our office to all departments, as these items are not kept on file in Graduate Admissions. Please furnish new copies of those items directly to each department.

How do I change my application to a different semester?

Applicants are eligible for a one-time move without filing a new application and application fee. Requests should be made in writing to gradadm@uga.edu. Please contact Graduate Admissions no earlier than 13 to 14 months before the month that your anticipated new semester of enrollment is to begin. For example, if you want to change your application to Fall 2011, you may make the request as early as May 1, 2010. Also, your request for a change must be made before the drop-add period of the semester that you originally applied for has ended.

Admissions Requirements

What are the admissions requirements to pursue a degree program?

You must hold at least a baccalaureate degree accredited by the appropriate regional accrediting association or its international equivalent prior to the expected semester of enrollment. The Graduate School and the department to which you are applying have additional requirements.

Degree-seeking students must submit the following materials:

To Graduate Admissions in the Graduate School:

Online application and application-processing fee

Unofficial transcripts from each institution attended. (If UGA, you do not need to submit.) Official transcripts are only required if offered admission.

Three (3) letters of reference submitted online when you submit the application.

Request official entrance test scores to be sent directly to Graduate Admissions.

To the Academic Department

Additional supplemental information (check with the program coordinator in the academic department)

What are the admissions requirements if I do not want to obtain a degree?

You must hold at least a baccalaureate degree accredited by the appropriate regional accrediting association or its international equivalent prior to the expected semester of enrollment. The Graduate School and the department to which you are applying have additional requirements.

UGA has two classifications of students who are enrolled for graduate study but do not want to pursue a degree program: transient students (students who are currently enrolled in a graduate program at another institution and want to attend UGA for one semester) and nondegree students (students who wish to take courses for certification, licensure, or personal interest).

If you wish to be a transient student or nondegree student, you should first confirm with the academic department that the department will consider admission in these categories, before submitting your application for admission. (The application processing fee is non-refundable.)

Nondegree applicants must submit:

To Graduate Admissions in the Graduate School:

Online application and application-processing fee

Unofficial transcripts of the highest degree earned. Official transcripts will be required if offered admission.

To the Academic Department

Additional supplemental information as required by the department (check with the program coordinator in the academic department.)

Transient applicants must submit:

To Graduate Admissions in the Graduate School:

Online application and application-processing fee

Transient Form (letter of good standing) sent to us directly from the Dean or graduate officer at your current institution.

To the Academic Department

Additional supplemental information as required by the department (check with the program coordinator in the academic department.)

When will I receive a notification of the admissions decision?

Each department establishes its own timeline and procedures for making admissions recommendations. Once departments forward their recommendation to the Graduate Admissions Office, a final review is made. The admissions decision is made by the Graduate School and will be mailed to you in an official letter.

Are there additional requirements for international applicants?

Information, resources, and general tip sheets found via our Supplemental Information for International Applicants will facilitate your admissions processing. This page will help you determine appropriate credentials to submit and steps to follow. You will find specifics requirements for academic records, proof of degree, US degree equivalencies and English language proficiency. The tip sheets suggest what Graduate Admissions looks for to complete your file.

Financial

How can I get classified as a Georgia resident for tuition purposes?

You must be eligible based on the University System of Georgia Board of policy. The residency requirements are described under section 403.02. You can also access the petition for in-state classification online.

If you feel that you qualify, complete the residency petition and return it with supporting documentation as identified on the instructions page to Graduate Admissions.

How do I apply for financial aid?

Requests for financial aid in the form of assistantships and waivers of non-resident tuition should be made to the academic department to which you are applying. To be eligible for departmental nomination for the UGA Graduate School assistantships (offered by the Graduate School), all general application materials must be received in the Office of Graduate Admissions by January 1 or by the departmental admissions deadline, if earlier than January 1.

Academic departments have additional resources to offer departmental assistantships. Please note, that each academic department establishes its own deadlines and criteria for the departmental assistantship awards.

A limited number of waivers of the out-of-state tuition portion of the tuition are available from the Graduate School. The academic departments must make nominations, so requests should be submitted to the department. The deadline for initial waiver decisions is usually in early April.

Letters of Recommendation

How many letters of recommendation do I need?

Most departments require three letters of recommendation for degree-seeking applicants. Non-degree and transient applicants are not usually required to submit letters of recommendation. Check with the academic department for the most up to date requirements.

How do my recommenders submit letters of recommendation?

The application for admission has mandatory fields for recommender information. These must be filled in and you should verify the entered details for accuracy. When your paid applicatiion is submitted and acknowledged, your recommenders receive an email with a secure link and a pin and password to complete your recommendation. The letter is then downloaded to the Graduate School via a secure web database where the department to which you applied can view and print the letters.

Some departments allow recommenders to submit letters in different formats than the one the application uses. You should check with your academic department to see if they allow this. Do not tell recommenders to submit paper or email letters to the Graduate Admissions Office. Since these are for department faculty to review, they need to go directly to the department and the Graduate School does not need to review them.

Other

If refused, how do I appeal the decision?

University of Georgia applicants have the right to appeal admissions decisions. The appeal must first be filed with the academic department responsible for the admissions decision. The department will reconsider your application and inform you of their decision on your request for reconsideration. An unfavorable ruling at the department level may be appealed to the Graduate School within 30 days of the date on the correspondence that you received from the academic department’s decision on the initial appeal.

How can I contact you with additional questions that are not answered by the information on your website?

First, be sure you have closely reviewed the website and appropriate links. Graduate Admissions staff have worked to ensure that all pertinent information is available online. Second, if your question deals mainly with departmental issues (e.g. assistantships, decision timeline, etc.), please contact the department directly. A listing of departmental contacts is available on our Degree Programs website.

Finally, if your reading of the Graduate Admissions website does not yield the answers you need, please email your question to gradadm@uga.edu.

Do I have to submit an immunization or health history form?

Yes, all accepted applicants who are new to the University of Georgia must fill out an immunization and health history form prior to their first registration. This is submitted to University Health Services. More information is available on the UHS website.

Tests

Is the GRE or other standardized entrance test required?

All applicants to a degree program, with the exception of a few programs, must request official test scores to be reported to Graduate Admissions. Most programs require the GRE. Some require GMAT. All doctoral programs with the exception of the Ph.D. in Business Administration require the GRE examination. See the list below for degree programs that will accept more than one entrance test score.

Applicants whose primary language is not English must submit official TOEFL or IELTS scores that are not more than two years old. Applicants who have received degrees from accredited institutions in the U.S. or from institutions in countries where English is the primary language (e.g., the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand) usually are not required to submit the TOEFL (or IELTS) scores. If such an applicant received the degree more than two years prior to application to the Graduate School and has been residing/working in a country where the primary language is not English, he or she must submit current scores. Students who are currently enrolled and have been enrolled at least one year at a regionally accredited U.S. institution, may have the English language proficiency requirement waived, if their work shows a strong quality of performance. Some departments may require the TOEFL (or IELTS) regardless of previous educational experience.

The University of Georgia will accept satisfactory scores on either the TOEFL or IELTS language proficiency examinations for admission to graduate programs. Test scores must be submitted directly from the testing agency and must be received before the academic department makes a recommendation for admission.

Transcripts

What are the requirements for submitting transcripts?

Applicants should submit unofficial transcripts from all institutions attended as part of the online application. Unofficial transcripts not submitted as part of the online application can be emailed to gradadm@uga.edu. Official transcripts are not required during the review process and will only be required for applicants who are offered admission. Do not mail official transcripts until offered admission. For information about international credentials and what is considered by us to be official, please visit our Country-Specific Academic Credentials and Requirements page.

Applicants must submit the following materials:

To Graduate Admissions in the Graduate School:

Unofficial transcripts from each institution attended. (If UGA, you do not need to submit).

My academic records/transcripts are not listed on the status page. Why?

If you are an international applicant, your records are generally not listed on the status page until the department makes a recommendation for admission. At that time, the counselor will review your materials and inform you of academic documents that are still needed to finalize your application.

If information in the “blue section” of the status page is blank, you should contact the academic department for this information. They are responsible for updating information in the “blue section”.

My school can’t send my official transcript right away. Can I send you a copy of my transcript and register for my classes now?

No, the Graduate School and the academic department must have an official copy (as defined in No. 7) to be fully admitted to the Graduate School. If your transcript has not been received by the first day of classes for your admission term, email gradadm@uga.edu. No, the Graduate School and the academic department must have an official copy (as defined in No. 7) to be fully admitted to the Graduate School. If your transcript has not been received by the first day of classes for your admission term, email gradadm@uga.edu.